Tallahassee – Governor Crist, the bishops of Florida continue to plead for an end to the use of the death penalty in our state. The September 23 execution of Richard Henyard will be another example of our failure to recognize the inherent dignity of every human being, even those guilty of horrible crimes.

While the untimely deaths of the two young victims and serious injury to their mother cry out for justice, we are reminded that executions diminish us as a civil society and perpetuate a culture of death instead of a culture of life that acknowledges all are created in God’s image. The details of this crime, including the culpability of the accomplice and the young age of Mr. Henyard at the time of the crime, are enough reason to question the inconsistencies in sentencing in Florida, a point made by the Florida Death Penalty Assessment Team in 2006.

Life in prison without possibility of parole is severe punishment for offenders. While the Church acknowledges that society has a right to execute violent transgressors, the ability of the modern penal system to protect society makes the need for the death penalty very rare, if not practically nonexistent.

We pray for and grieve with Dorothy Lewis who lost her daughters, Jasmine and Jamilya, as the result of this crime. No one can truly comprehend the unimaginable loss of two young children.

Governor Crist, we ask you to spare the life of Richard Henyard. Killing another human being perpetuates violence in our society. We must respect all life, even those who have done great wrong.

"War is a scandal to be mourned every day. We see war in the newspapers ever and we're used to reading about it: the number of its victims is just part of our daily accounts. We hold events to commemorate the centenary of the Great War and everyone is scandalized by the many millions of dead. But today it's the same... instead of one great war, there are small wars everywhere. When we were children in Sunday School and we were told the story of Cain and Abel, we couldn't accept that someone would kill their own brother. And yet today millions kill their own brothers and we're used to it: there are entire peoples divided, killing each other over a piece of land, a racial hatred, an ambition.

Think of the children starving in refugee camps... these are the fruits of war. And then think of the great dining rooms, of the parties held by those who control the arms industry, who produce weapons. Compare a sick, starving child in a refugee camp with the big parties, the good life led by the masters of the arms trade. And remember, that the wars, the hatred, the hostility aren't products we buy at the market: they're right here, in our hearts. The Apostle James gives us a simple piece of advice: 'Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.' But the spirit of war, which draws us away from God, doesn't just reside in distant parts of the world: the spirit of war comes from our own hearts."

- Homily given by Pope Francis at the Casa San Marta on February 25, 2014